ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Sunday rejected reports claiming that Houthi missiles struck a Saudi air base and damaged Pakistan Air Force (PAF) JF-17 fighter jets, describing these claims as “absolute fake.”

The statement came amid ongoing Houthi attacks against the Kingdom, where Pakistan has deployed military personnel and equipment as part of a joint defense cooperation agreement signed between the two countries in Sept. last year.

Some social media users this week claimed that Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis had struck King Abdulaziz Air Base in Dhahran with missiles, damaging three Pakistani JF-17 fighter jets deployed at air base.

In a post on X, Pakistan’s information ministry on Sunday dismissed the claims as “false” and said some “Indian propaganda SMAs (social media accounts)” were involved in spreading such fake information.

“No credible or official source has also reported any sort of damage to PAF JF-17s,” the Pakistani ministry said. “The deliberate fabrication of damage to PAF aircraft and their alleged evacuation is only blatant Indian propaganda.”

New Delhi did not immediately respond to the statement.

On Thursday, debris from a Houthi drone that was intercepted and destroyed fell in Taif, killing a Yemeni resident and injuring a Saudi woman and a Pakistani resident, who was critically wounded. Several buildings and vehicles were also damaged.

The incident came two days after Saudi air defenses intercepted a drone south of Makkah that authorities said was attempting to enter the holy city’s airspace. Saudi officials described the attempted attack as a major escalation.

Earlier this month, Houthi attacks on southern Saudi Arabia injured dozens of people and damaged energy-related facilities, according to Saudi authorities. The renewed fighting represents a major escalation after a UN-brokered truce in 2022 halted large-scale fighting in Yemen.

The confrontation has ​become another ⁠front ​in the ⁠broader conflict that followed US and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February. Tehran has responded by targeting US bases in the Gulf region as well as civilian and economic interests in its neighborhood.

On Sunday, Iran's military central command said on state media that any new attack would trigger sustained retaliation against US bases and interests in the region. It did not elaborate on the information it said it had about a coming US attack.